When Vince Garcia, a former colleague from my days in Los Angeles, asked me to be on his radio show, quickly agreed. Radio? In LA? The idea conjured up memories of my LA commute, listening to Larry Mantle and Chumbawamba, zooming home along a sunny Mulholland Drive. Wow: the radio. Sure the time-slot was Sunday at noon, Pacific Time – not exactly prime time – but his was my very own dream deferred: didn’t I apply to college hoping to have my own radio show?
Vince thought it would be interesting to discuss my time at Tufts and what I’ve observed on “the other side of the desk.” (Full disclosure: I’ve never liked that phrase “the other side of the desk.” To me, it seems to rest on a broken metaphor and makes me wonder why most all the desks I’ve ever sat at have faced a wall…..)
To prepare for the show, I visited the website. I had full confidence in the hosts, Elsa and Vince, experienced college admissions professionals in Los Angeles. Their weekly show features guests from all corners of the admissions process. I felt honored simply to have my name listed next to some of the former guests.
I went to my office and called at the arranged time. The familiar and comforting voices on the other end helped calm me. And despite the fact that the phone I was using had some very odd feedback – I kept hearing myself talk with a one second delay – the time flew by.
If you’re interested, here’s the URL for the show. However, I want to even more strongly suggest you listen to the podcasts of some of the other guests. One of the more recent podcasts features Marc Meredith from Otis College of Art and Design. Another includes the wisdom of Ted O’Neil at the University of Chicago. And don’t miss Thyra Briggs of Harvey Mudd College and Terry Kung of the Oakwood School discussing the college essay.
As I returned home, I reviewed the randomness of my responses and realized that I’m a full-on rambler. I began to wonder what the world record was for non-stop college admissions talk. When I got home, my wife told me that she listened to the show for a few minutes. She informed me that I was “boring” and that she’d heard it all before. (She always tells me that her frankness is one of the main reasons I married her….)
And on one hand, she’s right: was I saying anything new about college admissions? Has anything changed in college admissions? And is anyone listening about how important access to higher education is? What is being done to address the outrageous lack of counseling in many public schools? How many more times can we hear that (according to the California Department of Education) the average student to counselor ratio in California is 945:1, and nationally the number is 477:1.
Of course, Elsa and Vince ARE making a difference. Broadcasting an internet radio show on the topic of college admissions gives anyone with a computer a chance to learn about new developments in the field. Bravo, LA Talk Radio! Bravo, Elsa and Vince!
It’s a small world. I joined TAAP this year as an alum interviewer (enjoying the experience tremendously) and a few weeks ago my daughter and I met John McGarry at CA who mentioned that a CA counselor was doing a sabbatical at Tufts. Then this morning, I stumbled upon your interesting blog while looking through the TU website.
While I’m interested in learning about college admissions (both because of my TAAP work and because I have 2 kids who will be ready for college apps in a few years), a more pressing question for our family is whether to go the public or private secondary school route. For financial reasons and because our local public school is strong, public seems like the obvious and inevitable default. But I’ve seen very little written about the trade offs of the public vs. pvt. choice, particularly re: how it affects college admissions choices a few years later. I’d welcome any insights you might have.
Great blog and enjoy your time at TU!
Sue
Dear Sue,
Thanks for your comment and for reading. As you can probably tell by some of what I’ve posted this semester, I’m learning a lot in my return to college admissions and my admiration for Tufts University, its students, alumni, and the ‘Bubs (just finished watching The Sing Off) continues to grow.
Your question about private vs. public school is a great one. And while I’d welcome a more nuanced conversation at another time, I’m confident that any response I’d have to the relative merits of one vs. the other would probably be heavily influenced by kid-specific thinking. Choosing a high school is a great luxury, and although I know many would disagree with me, I’m skeptical about including college admissions considerations as a factor in choosing a high school education. A lot can change in four adolescent years — heck, a lot can change in a day for most high school students — so why try to look into an already very hazy crystal ball?
There are certain “types” of students that I feel benefit significantly from a private school education, but count me among those who have great appreciation for their own journeys through a public system.
As admissions officers, we obviously appreciate both public and private schools, and increasingly, those home schooled (if for no other reason than home schoolers increase the number of class presidents on our profile — seriously, we don’t do that).
Best of luck. Ain’t parenting fun?
Peter
“A lot can change in four adolescent years — heck, a lot can change in a day for most high school students — so why try to look into an already very hazy crystal ball?” This is precisely the conclusion I came to a few days ago. Instead of trying to anticipate, predict, or control things that are in flux and far off in time we’re trying to support her current passion for learning and exploration. The future will work out if we successfully inspire and encourage in the present. And, yes indeed, parenting is fun!
Thanks so much for your thoughts.